West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday said a BJP government would bring the Tata Group back to the state and revive Bengal’s industrial growth, while accusing the previous Left Front and Trinamool Congress (TMC) governments of failing to create a sustainable industrial environment.
Addressing a press conference, Adhikari said his government would pursue industrialisation through a balanced approach that protects farmers’ rights while attracting investments and generating employment opportunities.
“We will bring back the Tatas in Bengal,” Adhikari asserted, referring to the Tata Motors Nano project that was shifted from Singur in Hooghly district to Gujarat in 2008 following prolonged protests over land acquisition.
The chief minister criticised both the Left Front and the TMC over their handling of industrial development, alleging that one relied on forcible land acquisition while the other failed to translate promises into actual investments.
“We don’t want to indulge in lies and organise photo sessions like the previous government did to attract industries,” he said.
On the issue of land acquisition, Adhikari said the state government was working on a comprehensive policy framework but made it clear that industrial growth would not come at the expense of farmers and local communities.
“The government is working on its land acquisition policy. We are against forcible land acquisition, like what happened in Singur and Nandigram during the erstwhile Left Front regime. At the same time, we are also against the TMC’s policy of doing nothing while only holding photo sessions and spreading lies about bringing industries,” he said.
Adhikari said the BJP government was committed to ensuring industrial development through consensus and public participation, avoiding controversies that had marred previous attempts to attract large-scale investments.
The Singur and Nandigram movements remain landmark events in West Bengal’s political history. The protests against land acquisition for industrial projects played a crucial role in strengthening Mamata Banerjee’s political campaign and eventually helped the Trinamool Congress end the Left Front’s 34-year rule in 2011.
The chief minister maintained that Bengal has the potential to emerge as a major industrial destination once again and said his government would focus on creating a business-friendly environment while safeguarding the interests of farmers and local residents.
Adhikari’s remarks come amid renewed political debate over industrialisation, investment inflows and employment generation in West Bengal, with the BJP seeking to position itself as a pro-development alternative focused on economic growth and job creation.
